


My Telescope

by TheInconsequential



Category: Bastille (Band), STARSET (Band)
Genre: M/M, Scientists in Love, Slow Burn, this is a really really slow burn and i'm so sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-26
Updated: 2018-06-15
Packaged: 2019-02-06 22:42:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,751
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12827664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheInconsequential/pseuds/TheInconsequential
Summary: Dan Smith. Mad scientist extraordinaire. Sort of.Dan's main goal is to perfect human existence in space. He strives to find the answer that will solve humanity's problems of not being able to survive outside the Earth's atmosphere. To be able to traverse the stars with little to no issues at all. To become true celestial bodies. But he's crazy...according to anyone who's lucky enough to spot him in public. Or is he?Dustin Bates. PhD and newly hired professor at Arizona State University. Dustin simply wants to teach the world. Or his class. He's determined to teach his students about the benefits and dangers of technology and what it could mean for the future. That's all he really wants.Until he runs into Dan.





	1. Just Another Brain on the Campus

There was a hole in Dan’s roof. Not the first hole, and certainly not the last, but a hole nonetheless. It created a spotlight on Dan’s floor, the sun beaming down through the dust, as stray pieces still dangled and fell from the ceiling and Dan coughs and turns on the nearest fan to blow off the smoke. This is why he removed his annoying fire alarms. He was rather capable of calling 911 when he needed to. 

“Bloody hell…Gonna have t’ ring the carpenter again…” He grumbles, bending over to pick up the pieces of ceiling and roof to dispose of them. 

The carpenter in mind is on speed dial, in fact. Dan makes sure to pay the man well, and then some for all his hard work and many, many arrivals to Dan’s dwelling. He’s one of the few people Dan allows over. The carpenter and the mail man. Though he can’t really stop the mail man. 

When most of the debris has been picked up, Dan spins himself back around to the glass writing board behind him. He’s covered in soot and his hair sticks up as though he’s stuck his finger in an electric socket and behind a round pair of glasses, he squints. He rubs his chin and stares at the collective of numbers and symbols. 

“Where did I go wrong this time…?” He wonders aloud. 

Dan had always been interested in space. In all things Sci-Fi and alien. As a young boy, he’d often lay in his cooped up little backyard in London and look up at the stars. The general light pollution never allowed him to see as much as he would have liked, but seeing the twinkling stars above every night was soothing. Soon he found himself scouring through books. Surely the stars had names. These books began to pile in his tiny room, sometimes to his mother’s annoyance as they generally blocked the door and thus prevented her from coming in. But Dan was enraptured. The soonest Christmas or birthday he could, he asked for a telescope. His wish was granted and often his mother would find him camped out in the backyard, tent and all. She knew she had a bright boy.

With the call made to the carpenter, Dan had at least cleaned up as much as he could. Cleaning, in this case however, simply meant the area on the floor where pieces of his roof and ceiling remained. His house otherwise was a perpetual state of disarray. Papers scattered, filling cabinets filled to bursting, string connecting photo after photo, and nearly every conceivable surface written upon. Dan was disorganized. He wasn’t disorganized to the point of being in danger or unhygienic, but it was enough to turn away most of the people who happened to get a glimpse into his home. Not that he wanted them there in the first place. 

The carpenter eventually arrives laughing as Dan tells him the latest story. Dan isn’t nearly as embarrassed as he was the very first time this happened and he promises to stay out of the way while the other man works. He figures he’ll take a trip to the University to peruse their book selection and he tries his best to make himself look presentable before grabbing his briefcase and heading out to wait for the bus at the bus stop just down the street. Much like the beginning of his day, this was routine. Dan knew the bus that would stop and pick him up, bus #7, and he knew the bus driver Mike, would greet him happily as he always did. Dan checks the watch on his wrist, the one he’d made himself, the bus should be any minute. Sure enough, he watches it round the corner. He fixes his glasses on his nose, rising up the steps to deposit the change he’d fished from his pocket when it arrives. 

“How’s it goin’, Dan?” Mike asks in his jolly, scruffy voice. It reminds Dan of Santa Clause. 

Dan nods back at him with a slight grin, “Alright, Mike..” 

Dan makes a bee line to the back of the bus, sitting in the furthest seat closest to one of the windows. He tucks his legs up on the seat next to him and holds his briefcase in his lap, pressing his forehead to the window. He liked the way the vibrations felt on his head. It would take at least 30 minutes to get to the University but Dan always, always had time. At some point or another Dan finds himself dozing off. It feels like he’s only just closed his eyes when he opens them again to the sound of Mike speaking over the intercom to explain that they’ve reached the University. He rises with a yawn, briefcase in hand, and exits the bus. The campus is bustling, as per usual. Perhaps even more so because finals were approaching. Dan had of course memorized the school’s academic schedule. But it also wasn’t hard to deduce based on the behavior of the students that he passed by and their conversations. 

Dan is thankful that the library isn’t very far from the bus stop and the world goes from loud to quiet in an instant as soon as the door closes behind him. He wanders past an empty front desk, vaguely wondering who might’ve been working today. The University library was his favorite library. It had floors upon floors of information and its quietness was comforting. Dan makes his way to the Biology section first, grabbing a book or two on human anatomy. He then finds the elevators toward the back of the first floor, pressing a button to call one down. He spent most of his time on the top floor of the library, that’s where all the astronomy books were. The elevator arrives and Dan’s heart gives a jolt when the doors open, expecting people to be inside but it was instead empty. He didn’t like close quarters with other people. 

He steps into the elevator, rapidly but not obviously pushing the close door button so that no one else could follow him in. The elevator rises through the floors, taking him to where he desired to be and when the doors open again, this level of the library is even more deserted than the first. Dan could truly be alone up here. He steps out into the quiet and heads toward the astronomy books. His eyes scan over the shelves as he notes the books he’s already read whilst looking for ones he had yet to read or for anything new. At least 3 titles pop out at him and he grabs the books, stacking them with the two anatomy books he’d also grabbed. He makes his way toward a window seat near the far end of a table. As he passes by the front end of the table, his eyes gloss over a thick stack of papers stapled together, normally he wouldn’t think anything of it, but the title catches his eye and he nearly drops the books.

“Deep Space: Traversing the Stars”

Dan’s interest of course is immediately peaked. He sets the books down and sits right down in front of the paper. He only thinks to glance around for a moment, to see if the owner was on their way back but no one was in sight. He reads over the title page, spotting the name, “Dr. Dustin Bates, PhD” The fact that this was done by someone else who also obtained a PhD made Dan just a little giddy. He turns the page, neglecting the books now for this thick report. Within the first page though he appears to find errors. Clicking his tongue, he whips out a red pen, correcting them to fit the narrative. Then he’s onto the next page, and the following page, and the page after that. Soon, the papers are covered in not only red ink, but sticky notes. (That Dan seemed to keep on his person at any given moment.)  


It’s not until Dan is finished that he realizes what a colossal mistake he’s made. Based on the preparation of the paper, it appeared to be a finished work, something ready to submit. Terror grips him like vines and he looks around frantically. He could throw it away? Would that be worse? Assuming the individual did not come back for the paper, it wouldn’t be any different. As a last ditch effort, Dan smacks a single sticky note to the title page with, “SORRY!” written in block letters. He gathers the books he’d obtained, ready to ditch the paper. In his haste when he gets up from the chair, he’s turned and nearly face to face with a man in a bow tie who seems about as tall as him. The books he’s holding seem to fly out of his hands and to save himself embarrassment he tries to gather them all but manages to trip, landing flat on his face as his glasses emit a crunching sound. 

“Are you alright?!” The man asks, clearly concerned and immediately bending down to help Dan.

Dan frantically scrambles to get himself up, broken glasses be damned as he tries to get away from the entire situation. He leaves the books scattered behind and tries to find the nearest bathroom, leaving the stranger behind in a whirlwind of confusion. Dan skids into one of the bathroom stalls, slamming the door behind him and thankful that no one else seemed to be in the bathroom as well. His chest heaves as he tries to catch his breath and his heart feels like it’s going to pop from his chest. He leans back against the cool metal of the stall, groaning. That could be defined as the worst, most embarrassing moment of his life. Ever. And he never, ever wants to leave that bathroom stall. He slides down to the floor, peeling his glasses off his face to examine them. 100% broken, he finds. He has more but that’s the least of his concern now. He’s unsure of how he’ll even leave the bathroom at this rate. Perhaps he’ll have to live in the stall, now, and abandon his house. 

Dan doesn’t know how long it is after the fact that he’s realized he left his briefcase behind. 

“Of course. Of fucking course…” He mutters, running a hand through his hair. 

Dustin, meanwhile, is still trying to process what the hell just happened. He picks up the scattered books the jumpy stranger had dropped, brows raising as he reads the titles. He doesn’t touch the briefcase the man left behind, setting the books next to it. It’s only then that he’s finally able to sit down for a minute to look over his paper. His eyes squint when he notices all the red writing and soon he’s flipping through page after page after page and a white rage is starting to fill his veins because this stranger just ruined MONTHS and MONTHS of work that he’d perfected. He clutches the paper in his hands, ready to get up and find the man so he could possibly sock him in the mouth but he stops. He breathes deeply a few times, blanking out his mind for a moment and letting the silence of the library overtake him. When he’s calm enough, he picks up the paper again.

He reads over it a bit more slowly now and comes to realize that the red ink is more helpful than he’d realized. The man had corrected him, here, there, and everywhere. These were good corrections. Valid criticisms and changes that made more sense to him than what he’d originally wrote. It was as if this stranger had graded his own paper. But why? Dustin didn’t know this man. He certainly didn’t recognize him despite the fact that he had appeared to be dressed much like a professor would be. He glances at the briefcase. Dustin was better than this, not that he was going to open it and go snooping.

But he was curious. And the least he could do was return it.


	2. I Have Half A Life To Re-Write

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan's a nervous ball of atoms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright. So I ended up getting this chapter out a bit later than expected. I'd been dealing with finals week and everything but now I'm on break! 
> 
> Enjoy!

Dan still isn’t exactly sure how much time has gone by since he locked himself in the bathroom, but the stranger hasn’t followed him and his bottom is starting to go a little numb from sitting on the floor for so long. With a heaving sigh, he pushes himself up, wincing slightly and stretching out his sore limbs. He goes to wash his hands, observing his face in the mirror and decides to take his glasses off, throwing them into the trash. He really, really hopes his briefcase is still where he left it. There were some things in there that really didn’t need to get into the wrong hands and Dan didn’t have time to worry about that. When he exits the bathroom, he finds the top floor of the library still as deserted as ever, but outside, the sun is setting. He heads back over to the table where he’d left his things, only to find a neat stack of books. 

“Shit! Shit shit shit!” He exclaims, just slightly a little too loud for the library’s atmosphere. He tugs at his hair. 

It was gone. Of course it was gone. The man probably looked inside and found the things Dan didn’t want anyone else to find and it was gone and he was gone. He was probably going to use them and profit off of them for his own purposes. Dan’s mind raced. He checked under the chairs, under the table, on the nearby shelves. Nothing. Anger and frustration flood him and he can feel the betrayal of tears starting. He’s about to accept defeat when he notices something white sticking out from beneath the cover of the top book on the stack. He opens it, pulling out a folded piece of paper. In messy chicken scratch that would rival his own, Dan reads: 

_“Hey._  


_Sorry about what happened. I really didn’t mean to startle you or anything. I’d just realized I left my paper and then you were there and….yeah. But. I really appreciate what you did. All the corrections and stuff. You pointed out things I didn’t even realize._

_Anyway. I have your case. I didn’t look in it or anything. But I have it and it’s safe and I’d like to return it to you somehow. I don’t know. Uh. I’ll just leave my number I guess. Or my classroom number, that might be easier."_

_So yeah._  
_See you soon?_  
_Dustin_  


_“Oh. PS. Don’t worry about the books. I got them all checked out for you.”_

Dan has to re-read the letter a few times. At the bottom is both Dustin’s phone number and building and classroom number. So he was a professor here. Dan scratches his chin. Which would be worse? Calling or arriving at the classroom? He supposes arriving would be the better option. He checks the books and just like Dustin had promised, each was checked out and had a due date stamped into the inside of the front cover. Dan can’t really suppress the small smile he feels. It was rather nice of this stranger. In reality, the whole situation was a massive misunderstanding and Dan supposes that he should help set things straight. 

With a soft huff, he gathers the stack of books into his arms and sets off for home. Mike picks him up again and he finds himself home around 9 o’clock. The hole in his roof isn’t completely fixed, but the carpenter did a decent job for an entire day’s worth of work. Exhausted, Dan all but throws down the library books and falls onto his couch. He groans into the leather material. Today was way too much on his psyche. This is why he didn’t go out in public. How did people handle emotions and embarrassment? Dan sure as hell didn’t know. He sighs and rolls himself over to look up at his ceiling. He wonders if he should just make the previous hole a skylight. At least he wouldn’t have to go outside to see the stars. But then he liked going outside too. Moving to Arizona was probably one of the best decisions he ever made. One didn’t have to travel far at all to escape the already minimal light pollution. Even in his own backyard, Dan had the most spectacular view of the night sky and it was breathtaking, every single time. 

Skylight lamenting aside, Dan still couldn’t stop thinking about the events of the day. Everything happened so quickly and he barely got a glance at the stranger who he’d even bumped into. A bowtie, a flash of glasses, that was about it. But he’d have to see the man, Dustin, again, if he wanted his briefcase back. And he did. Really bad. He didn’t know Dustin but note was enough to confirm that he wouldn’t look inside the case. Dan was still paranoid though. He’d have to visit tomorrow. He checks his watch, it was 10PM. He’d already been lying there for an hour. He sits himself up and glances at the books he brought home. Shoving his hand into his pocket, he fishes out the note and his cellphone. In this day and age, even Dan knew he needed a smartphone at least. He lights up the screen and pulls up his messages, typing the number in that Dustin had left. 

His hands sort of shake as he stares at the blank screen, cursor line blinking as he tries to think of whatever the fuck he could say. He begins to type:

_“Got your letter. And the books! Thanks about the briefcase! See you tomorrow!”_

He stops. Too excited. He erases what he wrote and types again. 

_“I received your letter and took the books home. I appreciate that you did not disturb my privacy with my briefcase. I will see you tomorrow.”_

He stops again. Way too formal. He erases again. He groans. Even texting people was hard. 

_“I got your letter and took the books home. Thanks so much for that. I’ll stop by tomorrow for my case.”_

Impulsively, he hits send and watches as the message is delivered. He exhales loudly. He could really only hope that Dustin was busy or not awake or couldn’t find his phone, because he really didn’t want to think about having a conversation with him. Not yet. He knew he wanted to actually talk to Dustin though. That was rare, especially for Dan. But he couldn’t stop thinking about Dustin’s paper and how…intelligent, Dustin came off. Even if Dan had to make what seemed like a million corrections, Dustin was smart. His intelligence rivaled Dan’s own. And Dan wanted to talk to him. To pick his brain. He glances at his phone again. Nothing. The message didn’t even have the “read” notification. Maybe he got lucky tonight. 

Mustering as much effort as he possibly could, Dan pushes himself off the couch. He runs his fingers through his hair and grimaces at how greasy it felt. He heads to the bathroom, hoping to clean himself of the grime and embarrassment that he’d collected that day. Once he’s in the shower, he commences his ritual of cleaning himself and singing. The shower really was the only place he ever felt comfortable singing in. He didn’t hate his own voice necessarily, but he didn’t want to find out what other people thought of it. No one would mistake the brainiac for a singer. He sings his way through several songs and by the time he gets out of the shower, his hair still stands on end but it’s far cleaner than it was before. 

He picks at it with his fingers for a moment before grabbing a pair of boxers he’d slept in the night before off the floor. He throws the towel over the curtain rod to dry and grabs his phone, not daring to look at it. If Dustin had responded, he could just wait till morning. Or could he? What if it was important? What if Dustin had to change plans and Dan missed it? Dan once again suffers from rapid fire questions and worries until he finally decides to unlock his phone. Sure enough, there’s a response: 

_“Oh sweet. Awesome. Yeah, no problem. I’ll see you then!”_

It was a text that didn’t seem out of the ordinary at all. Simple and responsive. But reading it still made Dan’s heart race. Apparently he now had plans to meet Dustin tomorrow. His heart gives a nervous leap. But suddenly the three dots show up to indicate Dustin was typing and Dan nearly throws his phone at the wall. A second message pops up: 

_“Come by at 3. My class will be over by then.”_

Oh…fuck.

So this wasn’t going to be brief. Dan wasn’t just coming by to pick up his case and thank Dustin and leave. No. He was going to be alone with Dustin. He lets out a loud groan. This is how his life was going apparently. Ruin a stranger’s professional work, make a fool of yourself, lose your own important work. Dan was always nervous about practically anyone. But his nerves had already become shot to shit when it came to Dustin. With a defeated sigh, Dan returns a response anyway:

_“Okay.”_


	3. Where Do We Begin, The Rubble Or Our Sins?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan's still anxious. 
> 
> It's just that he's now anxious and face-to-face with Dustin

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello and Merry Christmas!
> 
> So I'm getting this chapter out: Later than expected and a page shorter than expected. 
> 
> I'm really really trying to keep on top of getting out 5 pages every two weeks but sometimes I fall into a slump. 
> 
> This chapter is rather boring and I apologize. I realize I'm dragging this out a bit and trust me when I say I want to get the the juicy bits because I have A LOT coming. This story's gonna get a little crazy.
> 
> But I want to draw it out and at the same time it's killing me. 
> 
> Nonetheless I hope you all have had very happy holidays thus far and I hope you enjoy this shorter, slightly boring chapter!

Dan doesn’t sleep. Or rather, he doesn’t sleep immediately. He’s freshly cleaned, comfortable under his blanket, as he stares at the ceiling. His room isn’t pitch black, that scares him a little too much. Instead, it’s dimly lit. A cheap little star gazing nightlight of sorts gently rotates in the far corner of his room, casting pricks of light on the walls. It’s not bright enough or loud enough to keep him awake. He doesn’t like pure silence either. Tonight, the only thing that keeps him awake is himself. He replays the incident at the library with Dustin over and over, imagining a different scenario each time in which he didn’t make a complete and utter fool of himself. He returns often to the one where Dustin arrives before Dan made any corrections. In this daydream, Dustin doesn’t startle him. In this daydream, Dan is confident enough to admit to the truth that he’d read Dustin’s paper and daydream Dustin laughs and says that it’s alright. Maybe this daydream Dustin blushes a little bit too. Dan groans.

Whatever. Tomorrow he’d meet Dustin properly for the first time and he tries to come up with a good, valid excuse to not stay longer than he’d like. He feels…bad. But he wants to get himself in check first. He wants to be the one to approach Dustin on his own terms. Regardless, this was the case and if he didn’t need his briefcase back he wouldn’t even have agreed to meeting Dustin anyway. Dan rolls onto his side. Then his other side. Then his stomach. Then back onto his back. Too nervous to even sleep. He remembers the time distinctly before he does eventually drift off. Midnight. His sleep is fitful, however. He’s awake what practically feels like every hour. He tries all he can think of to fall back asleep. He gets up. Reads a book. Stares at the ceiling again. At some point he does sleep into the morning, but by roughly 8AM his body just simply won’t give in to sleep anymore. He can feel the bags under his eyes and his limbs feel like lead weights as he rises from bed, wrapped in his blanket to approach his black out curtains to force them open and bring sunlight into the room.

With a stretch and a yawn he shuffles out to his kitchen and prepares coffee for himself, foregoing any elaborate breakfast for a simple bowl of cereal. He wasn’t sure if he’d even be able to keep down a full meal anyway. When breakfast is accounted for, he goes and gathers a suitable outfit from his closet. He didn’t want to dress like a homeless bum upon meeting Dustin. He even decides to choose a bowtie for the occasion. It takes some magic while he’s in the bathroom, but Dan emerges looking clean and sharp, his nerves cutting through the previous sleepiness that hung about him.

He checks his phone, it was only 10. He sighs, of course he had to wait 5 hours. He decides to try and keep himself busy, settling onto the couch and grabbing one of the checked out books from his coffee table. He glances at the back and the description on the inside cover. The book sounded promising outside of the title. He flips to the first page before realizing he hadn’t replaced his glasses. With a huff, he sets the book down and heads back into his room, double checking himself in a mirror before crouching near one of his bedside tables. Opening the bottom drawer reveals several glasses cases. He grabs one and pops it open, a brand new pair of glasses within remain untouched. Putting the glasses on, he shuts the case and closes the drawer and heads back out to his book. 

Dan doesn’t remember anything after the first 3 pages of the book. He awakes with a start due to his own snoring, his head on the back of the couch, mouth open and book having fallen onto his stomach. He blinks and rubs his eyes behind his glasses. His body apparently still needed the sleep it hadn’t given him earlier that morning. He pulls his phone out of his pocket, checking the time frantically. It was only noon. The day seemed to drag on, but Mike would be pulling up to the bus stop within half an hour, and Dan supposed it wouldn’t hurt to arrive at ASU an hour and a half early. Dan yawns and stretches, bookmarking his book and setting it aside to take with him when he left. He reaches forward for the TV remote on the coffee table and turns on a cartoon until it was finally time for him to leave. 

When Dan finally finds himself in front of Dustin’s classroom, his raised hand remains frozen in the air though it’s trembling like a leaf. He’d just hidden around the corner as he watched Dustin’s class file out and now he was in front of the door and he couldn’t find it in himself to grip the knob and turn. He really hopes he’s not visibly sweating. Inhaling and exhaling with the deepest breath imaginable, he takes the plunge and opens the door. He finds himself entering a typical university classroom. The room is large with a vaulted ceiling, rows and rows of seats that start low and rise upward the higher they go back. There’s a massive white board at the front of the room and a good portion of it is covered in numbers and equations and Dan catches a glimpse of the overhanging projector shutting off. Dustin’s desk area is in the far left corner of the room and he’s sitting at it, face deep into papers, a slight scrunched look across his features behind his glasses. He appears to have not noticed Dan come in.

 

Dan clears his throat softly and Dustin still doesn’t look up. He does it again, shuffling in place slightly and feeling his cheeks heat up just the slightest. Dustin looks up from his work but upon seeing Dan he seems to grin.

“Ah. So we finally meet.” He declares, pushing away from his desk to stand up and cross the room. 

Dan seems to stay rooted to the spot for a moment, quickly but discretely wiping his hands on his jacket and then, finally getting the idea to meet Dustin halfway. He approaches Dustin and they shake hands, Dan praying mentally that his hands aren’t disgustingly clammy. 

He clears his throat again, properly now, “Dr…Bates. A pleasure to actually, um, meet you….properly.” He manages to get out. 

Dustin’s smile remains as he drops his arm, “You can call me Dustin, that’s fine. And you would be…?”

Dan sort of seems to blush immediately at this, having forgotten to actually give his own name, “I’m…ah, Daniel Smith. Dual PhD.” 

Dustin’s brows raise at this, “Holy shit. Dual PhD? Pardon my language but that’s goddamn impressive.”

Dan blushes at this and he knows it’s visible. He clears his throat and scratches the back of his head, “Ah…thanks. I’ve….had a lot of time on my hands to study and all that.” 

It’s only now that Dustin really takes notice in Dan’s accent and he finds that it’s something he wants to hear. A lot, really. He clears his own throat, “You’re not from around here are you? Europe?”

Dan nods, “Yeah, South London. But I’ve lived in the states for a while now.”

“Mm, cool. That’s pretty awesome.” Dustin responds with a smile before his brows shoot up, “Ah yeah. The briefcase.” 

He turns around and heads back to his desk to grab it from a deep, bottom drawer. Dan notices that the bottoms of Dustin’s jeans are rolled up a little, exposing his ankles and a pair of converse. It’s slightly strange, but interesting. Dan isn’t sure if he should follow Dustin, but he inches his way toward the desk anyway.

“I wanted to thank you for the books again. With all the…” He waves his hands, trailing off for a second, “…I hadn’t gotten a chance to, y’know, get ‘em.” 

Dustin smiles as he holds the case in his hands then presents it to Dan who takes it almost a little too quickly, “Well hey, it was in safe hands.” He tells Dan with a wink. 

Dan fights back a third blush with all of his might and he clears his throat, holding the case in one hand, “I’m glad it was kept safe…But I’m sure you’re busy now so I should probably get out of your hair.”

Dustin rubs the back of his head, “Well…I’m not, actually. I mean. It can all wait till later tonight. Just papers and things to grade.” He mentions. “I was wondering, actually, if you wanted to….go get coffee?” He offers, his voice raising in inflection by the end of his sentence. 

Coffee. Dan liked coffee. And Dustin, it seemed. Before he could mentally talk himself out of it he’s nodding with a small smile, “Coffee sounds fantastic, actually.”


	4. This Is My Body And Soul, Here

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dan and Dustin have coffee. Dan cannot calm down to save his life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, holy shit I am back. 
> 
> So much has been happening in my life, this fic feels like it was eons ago.
> 
> I finally decided to finish this chapter, at the very very least. 
> 
> I'm on summer break and while that doesn't necessarily mean that I'll generate more activity, I have a lot more time on my hands. 
> 
> This story is very slow and I apologize for that. I'll try and pick up the pace more, both in story and publishing chapters. I cannot make promises though.
> 
> I'm also currently trying to write an actual book! Hopefully! Maybe!...
> 
> You can find it in my Works on here.
> 
> But yeah, as of now, tentatively, the nerd scientists are back. 
> 
> And hopefully I can remember the full plot I had going for this at one point.
> 
> Enjoy!

Dan was starting to think he’d need to take a Xanax or two and a drink just to quell his nerves when it came to Dustin. It had been about two weeks since he’d seen him in person, though they texted each other back and forth a bit frequently. This wasn’t as nerve wracking to Dan anymore. But now he found himself running his hands through his hair, nearly pulling it out as he tried to figure out what he was going to wear while meeting Dustin for the coffee they had agreed upon.

“This is bloody ridiculous.” He muttered to himself, flicking through hanger after hanger of shirts and blazers.

This is probably the third time he’s done this and when he gets to the end, he groans, “Of all the damn days, this is the one where I can’t find something to wear?” He speaks aloud to no one.

Dan seemed to be encased with this feeling as if he had to impress Dustin with what he wore. Heaven knows why. With a heavy sigh, he shuts his eyes and runs his hands over the hangers, the first two items he touches, he grabs. Opening his eyes reveals that the choosing game was not all in vain, and he sticks with the set of clothes he’s picked. He takes time to briefly check his phone, noting the time and nearly dropping it.

“SHIT! I’m gonna be late!” He exclaims, making an absolute mad dash to the bathroom for the quickest shower and clothes change of his life. He supposes he should get used to this routine of looking...presentable. To the general public of course. Not for Dustin or anything.

He’s out of the shower in record time, throwing on his clothes, trying to style his hair, and brush his teeth all at the same time, keeping a frantic eye on the clock. He grabs a random bottle of cologne and perhaps douses himself in too much of it, tripping his way through his house to find his shoes and nearly fall out his front door. He makes it halfway down the street before realizing he had forgot to lock the door. In the amount of time it takes for him to get home and back to the bus stop, Mike is pulling away and Dan stumbles after the bus, frantically waving his arms in an attempt to get it to stop. The bus stops, to which Dan almost runs into the back of, and he eventually clambers on and slumps down into his normal spot. He fixes himself up, hoping he isn’t sweating like a pig already.

  
When the bus arrives to the proper destination, Dan’s nerves suddenly shoot through the roof once more. He’d immediately pulled out his phone after sitting down to shoot Dustin a frantic text or three with apologies about being late. Dustin didn’t seem to mind, sending back his responses and ending with a winking emoji that made Dan’s stomach flop. For the final time, he checks himself before stepping off the bus. He’s thankful, at least, that the stop is right in front of the coffee shop so he doesn’t have to walk far but then he notices Dustin standing right inside near the door, looking down at his phone. As fate would have it, Dustin looks up and happens to look right at Dan. Dan can see his eyes register him and a grin break out on Dustin’s face and he offers back his own slight smile and a small wave. Dustin makes the move to open the door for Dan, holding it open as Dan steps inside.

“Good to see you’ve made it in one piece!” Dustin exclaims.

Dan nods with a slightly nervous laugh, “Uh, yeah. This whole morning was just kind of…crazy.”

Dustin seems to just smile and nod in a mutual understanding and turns to face the line of people as they secure their own spot and wait.

“So, have you been here a lot? Or at all?” Dustin asks, eyes scanning over the menus.

Dan shrugs, “From time to time. Not a whole lot, really. I don’t…um, get out much.”

“Gotcha, gotcha.” Dustin nods, “Well, the drinks and food all sound good. To me, coffee’s just coffee.”

Dan faces the menus as well, trying not to awkwardly stare at Dustin while deciding, “Yeah. I just like sweet stuff, y’know?”

Dustin agrees as they step forward, next in line, “I know it.”

When they go to place their orders, Dustin pays for both of them.

Dan smiles, albeit a little awkwardly after trying to insist Dustin not to, “Are you sure?”

Dustin nods, “I mean, I am the one who asked you out, right?”

Dan’s stomach does a massive backflip at the phrasing and Dustin doesn’t seem to notice as they head off to find a table. Dan ignores it the best he can as he sits opposite of Dustin.

“So why Arizona?” is the first thing to come out of Dan’s mouth.

Dustin shrugs, “You know, I don’t know. It was kind of like…y’know. There’s so many places to go. I could’ve stayed in Ohio. I taught for a semester there as an assistant. But I don’t know why I chose here. It was kind of like, throwing a dart on a map and seeing where it landed.”

Dan nods, “Yeah, I know the feeling. I chose here mostly because of the open space. The deserts are prime for stargazing. Plus the sort of…vacancy.”

Dustin nods, having his chin rested on his clasped hands. The more Dan talks, the more he wants to listen. Not that he’s never heard a British accent before. But not in conversation. He could really listen to Dan talk forever. When Dan gets into the details of his education and the work he’s done, Dustin’s heart does something funny. Dustin believed in soul mates, sure, but he never considered…another guy or anything. Perhaps he was getting ahead of himself but there was something about the way Dan talked, a passion that matched his own that-

His thoughts are interrupted with Dan starring at him expectantly and then snapping his fingers in front of his face, “Dustin? You still in orbit?” Dan asks with a laugh. Dustin shakes his head snapping out of whatever trance he’d fallen into, any…wayfaring thoughts about Dan slipping to the back of his mine.

“Shit. I’m so sorry. I…” Dustin flounders for an explanation but doesn’t find one.  
Dan laughs, “Hey. We all do it.”

Suddenly, their names are called. Dustin offers to get up and get the drinks, only if to further distance his mind from whatever it was he was going to think about regarding Dan.

There was no way Dan could ignore the way Dustin had been staring at him. None. Dustin had been nodding along with him and then at some point he stopped and there was a look at fell into his eyes that Dan couldn’t peg but he could feel his face heating up. Neither of them seemed to be quite aware of their own reactions, or the others, and it left Dan confused. He couldn’t recall feeling this way around anyone before.

Dan is once again snapped out of his thoughts when Dustin returns to the table with their cups. Despite the warmer weather outside, Dan still ordered a hot coffee. There was always something that couldn’t be beat when it came to the taste.

Dustin’s the one to start conversation again, “So you said dual PhD. In what, might I ask?”

Dan seems to light up at this question, “Well, it’s a bit between Astronomy and Human Biology and Anatomy. I’ve studied through Astrobiology however as well as Planetary Science. See…”

Dan pauses suddenly. He was really, incredibly unsure about unloading his vision to Dustin. He’d only just met the man and was about to tell him his life’s work. Like most everyone else he discussed it with, he was only met with disdain and a certain interest in the other party to suddenly, conveniently leave when he became too…passionate.

He swallows and takes a careful sip of his coffee, looking away from Dustin.

“I don’t…I don’t think you’d want to hear it…” He says quietly, under the drone of the sounds around them. He feels guilty, then and there, for even having met Dustin.

Dustin senses that something is amiss and he frowns, brows coming together, “Hey…you don’t need to feel ashamed or anything. We’re scientists. Discovering is what we do. Coming up with hypotheses and proving theories is our lifeblood. No one can take that from you.”

Dan feels a lump in his throat suddenly and his eyes begin to prick and burn a little, he feels even stupider for having such a reaction and he forces it back with a clearing of his throat.

“Thank….thank you.” He inhales, “Listen, I think if we wanted to discuss this further, in detail, maybe…we should go to my place?” He suggests, heart rate skyrocketing as soon as he makes the offer.

Dustin can tell that this would make Dan more comfortable, and he smiles and nods, “Yeah. Of course. I drove here, so maybe you could give me directions?”

Dan nods with a small smile and they both seem to stand at the same time, “Sure.”

As Dan follows Dustin from the café, his nerves seem to have flipped their switch again. He wills, demands himself to be relaxed. Dustin’s previous statement immediately flowing back into his thoughts.

Dustin wanted to hear what he had to say. What he had come up with and was discovering. He wasn’t going to laugh, wasn’t going to call him crazy or a fool.

Dan wanted his approval more than anything (almost anything…) and he was going to receive it.


End file.
